Working carers seek further support

10 Oct 17

More than 4 in 5 (83%) working carers believe they should be entitled to unpaid leave and other parental policies, a study has found.

An Aviva survey of more than 1,000 working adults found 4 out of 5 people caring for older relatives, partners or children with disabilities needed to leave work or cancel arrangements at short notice.

Furthermore, the average working carer spends at least 10 hours a week to support someone they care for while around 1 in 3 spend more than 10 hours caring for a loved one.

Figures from Carers Trust showed there are 4.27 million carers of working age in the UK and 1 in 8 workers is a carer.

1 in 5 (22%) had not told their employer about caring commitments, whereas 18% of respondents had only confided in trusted colleagues.

When asked why, 26% said they didn't want employers to think they weren't fulfilling their work responsibilities.

8% were concerned they would lose their job while the same proportion were worried their carer duties would affect their career prospects.

Andy Briggs, chief executive for UK insurance and global life and health at Aviva, said:

"It's unthinkable that some people don't feel able to tell managers and colleagues about their caring commitments.

"We want to break this taboo and encourage workers and employers to talk openly, in the same way that people talk about parental responsibilities."